Prophecies of Eden
by OriginalSluggo
Summary: Alessa was chosen to be a prophet when she was fused with a shard of Eden that has yet to give her any sort of powers. But when the Templars burn down her Sanctuary, she is forced to take refuge with the Auditores so she can be reunited with her foster mother, Paola. M for future chapters. Ezio and Federico listed because I don't know where this story will go. So read and find out.
1. Alessa

The prophet.

I have been called and worshiped as such my entire life. The priests have protected me my whole life, saying that one day my purpose would be fulfilled for the greater good of the Brotherhood. How, I have no idea.

All I know was that the Priest infused a shard of Eden into my body when I was just a newborn. I was not born to be a prophet, I was chosen. Why, you might ask? My mother was an unwed woman when I was born and she never told anyone who my father was. So when she died while giving birth to me the Priest made his decision.

A parentless child was perfect to harness a piece of Eden. An orphan was the last place the Templars would suspect to look for it anyway. But the Templars has already heard word of the church finding a shard of Eden. Of course, that had caused many deaths when the Templars came to look for it.

The Priest had taken away for safe holding so I was picked up by a man named Giovanni Auditore, another member of the Creed, and taken to Florence. There, he left me with a woman named Paola who had just started her business in a bordello.

After the Templars tore down the Sanctuary and the piece was yet to be found they gave up, taking their search elsewhere. They figured the same thing everyone else did, we had sent it away. No one even suspected that we even had a piece of Eden locked away inside a defenseless child.

So the Creed found it best for me to stay with her for a few years, as a way of hiding, and to gave them time to rebuild. Up until the age of seven I was raised by courtesans. Not really the religious views that the Priest would have liked, but at the very least Paola made sure I knew how to say my prayers at night.

Then there was always Maria Auditore who came over frequently to help Paola, who was only twenty at the time, in learning to raise a child. She would always bring Claudia, her daughter, over for me to play. The boys were always too busy being reckless to ever play as well, but I did get the chance to meet them.

But the day came for me to go home and it was time for me to go back to the Sanctuary. I said my tenderly heartbreaking goodbyes to the family I grew to love. Giovanni took me back to the Sanctuary, right outside of Firenze, and kissed my forehead goodbye.

From that day I was dressed in the least revealing, but finest, silks and treated like royalty. People bowed as I walked by, and took care of me should anything happen. I began to miss the carelessness of living in the bordello. I wanted nothing more than to roam around the outdoors and play in the grass. But alas, that was not the life planned for a child being raised in the walls of religion.

Paola, Maria and Claudia frequently wrote to me, telling me updates of the family. For a while my responses were merely pictures seeing that I was too young to read or write. The nuns would read the letters and mail my pictures for me.

For nine years I was able to stay in hiding and not a single Templar came by to bother us. That was until my Father was finally looking for me. He spread word that his Motherless child was being raised, most likely alone, and he needed to find her.

No one thought much of it. That is until the people of our small town began speaking of the child in the Sanctuary. It may have sparked a few threads in the brain to question; Why was an orphan not being raised in the orphanage? Why had the Priest took special liking to her?

The elders saw the potential threat and had contacted Giovanni as soon as they could to come and collect me. They wanted me back to Paola as soon as possible, and I would not be coming back. My father had ruined everything. I never hated him more than on the day the Templars came and burned the Sanctuary to the ground more than anything.

"Alessa! You must hurry! They are coming!" My defender, Amedeo, called through the hall on his way to my room.

I had just finished packing the basics of my travel, a small bag of clothes. As soon as I heard the first boom of the walls falling, I was rushed here to do so.

"I'm coming!" I called, running over to the door.

"_Andare li! _(Go there)" He rushed, grabbing my arm and dragging me to the tall bookcase in my room.

"Amedeo, there is no way out, we need to make it to the doors!" I yelled in a panic, re-adjusting the bag on my shoulder.

"No, it won't work. The Templars are surrounding the area. We must take the passage," He said, reaching out to the largest book.

"Passage?" I questioned, not aware of any.

He looked back and gave me a confident smile. As soon as he pulled the book back, it rose up to reveal a small opening, "Go through, I'll follow behind."

As he instructed I walked through and turned back to make sure he came as well. Surely enough he stepped through just in time for the passage to close. Amedeo then pushed his hand into a brick that disappeared and started to run while yelling, "Go! The passage will collapse!"

And so we ran. He linked hands with mine, just to be sure that I would make it out as well. It was only a bit of ways down the hall when we saw the light from the lanterns outside. As we reached the entrance, he halted our running and poked his head out. Judging by the look on his face when his gaze met mine, I knew it was not good.

But before he could say anything the path started to collapse from our entrance and down. The walls were caving in, and the Templars were running over to see what all the noise was.

Amedeo then grabbed my shoulders, forcing me to look at him so I could not focus on anything else, "Alessa. Listen. You leave this tunnel and go left. Don't stop until you get to the water. Giovanni will be waiting for you," he said, pulling the hood of my cape over my head, making it cover half of my face.

"But Amedeo, what of you?" I questioned, tears welling in my eyes.

"I will follow. As soon as I take care of these men," he said as the Templars grew near, and the walls closed in behind us, "Now run."

And with that, he kissed my forehead and shoved me forward. With a stumble at first, I caught my balance and began running left as instructed.

"_Eccola!_ (Here she is!)" They shouted, making me pause to look back as Amedeo drew his sword.

"Run Alessa! Don't look back!" He yelled and then charged to the men.

So I did. I ran until I felt as if my heart would give out, immediately regretting living a life as if I were a royal and not being more active. It was not until I heard clanking from above my head did I pause to look up. Much to my approval it was Amedeo who then jumped down from the roof tops.

"_Signora_, didn't I tell you to not stop running?" He questioned, a small smile planted on his face as he linked arms with mine, only having me do a fast paced walk.

"Amedeo," I said, trying to catch my breath, "I thought... I thought you would have-"

"What, died? Cara, I have been trained my whole life to protect you. I would not go down so easily. But we still must hurry. Giovanni will not be able to wait long," he said, "The waters are just up the road. There he will have a carriage waiting. You should be safe in there until we reach his villa."

"Giovanni's villa? What of Paola?" I questioned.

"Be patient. You will see Paola, I promise this," He smiled, "Look, here is Giovanni, go get inside of the carriage."

Almost as if on cue, Giovanni looked up and rushed over to us.

"Ahh! Alessa! How long! I wish it were on better terms, but none the less it is good to see you!" He boasted, pulling me into a tight hug before edging me into the carriage.

"It is good to see you as well, _Messer_ Giovanni," I said, still feeling rushed.

I guess there was no time to talk seeing that he had shut the door and turned his head to Amedeo. I had hoped Amedeo would be coming with us. But from their conversation all I heard was mumbles through the door. Sighing, I took the time to inspect my outfit.

My silk dress cut off the shoulders and fell to my ankles with a bit of a fluff from the hip down. The sleeves grew wide and retracted back to cup my wrist almost perfectly. I wore a brown bodice that tied in the front, sure to not reveal any cleavage. Then there was my full-length cloak that also reached down to my ankles. It was white with a golden trim, followed by the gold pattern that only covered areas near an edge. The hood was large, covering half of my face and still fanning out to my shoulders. Last was my silver necklace, a gift from Amedeo on my most recent birthday. It bore a pendant in the shape of the Eden shard.

I had a bit of dirt on me and my dressed was ripped toward the feet, but nothing I was going to be upset about. The important part was that I was alive, and so was Amedeo. I could only hope that the Priest had survived, but that would be hard to know at the moment.

When I felt the weight shift in the carriage I assumed that we would be leaving now, so I rested my head on the blacked out windows of the carriage. It would be a few hours in the ride so I might as well try to get some sleep.

I awoke from my sleep by Amedeo's gentle shake on my shoulder.

"_Alessa,_" He said tenderly, "Wake up, we need to get you inside."

"A-Amedeo?" I questioned, wiping the sleep from my eyes, "You're here?"

At that, he chuckled, _"Si, Carra._ I would not leave your side. Now come."

Amedeo helped me from my sleeping position and guided me out of the carriage and linked arms with mine as we walked. I stepped out to a sight I had not seen since I was seven years old. The Auditore villa. I was filled with bittersweet nostalgia for I knew it was only **_close_** to home. The bordello, however, would always hold a spot in my heart **as **home.

"Welcome back to my home, Alessa!" Giovanni said from behind us, "My children are sleeping. Though I'm sure Claudia will be happy to see you at breakfast."

Now I knew that it would be hours from now, but I doubted that it would take much time for me to want to eat much of anything.

_"Grazie, Messer,"_ I said, pulling the hood down from my face with the arm that was not occupied by Amedeo's.

"Ah. You grow more beautiful with the years. Surely you got your green eyes from your Mother. A rare trademark that would not have been able to come from your Father," Giovanni said, walking to the front of us so he would be able to look to me as he spoke.

"My Father? You knew my parents?" I questioned, weak with curiosity.

"Your father, yes. But your late mother is a mystery. All I know of her was that she was a traveling American. _Mi dispiace per la sua perdita_," He said, bowing. (I am sorry for your loss.)

"Grazie. But there is no loss in something you never knew," I said, looking to the floor before catching his eyes, "Would you tell me of my father?"

I couldn't help but want to know of the man who got me into this mess. The man who was the cause of the Sanctuary being burned down. Why he would bother wondering where I was after sixteen years, I would never know.

"Perhaps another time," Amedeo interrupted, giving Giovanni a stern look, "You must get to bed."

Nodding, I decided not to fight Amedeo tonight. It felt a bit weird to take orders from a man only two years older than me, but I knew he knew what was for the best. His soul purpose was to look after me, and I have never doubted him before.

So there I was led to a guest bedroom where I retired for the night. Tomorrow I would eat with the Auditores and hopefully see my foster mother, Paola.

**A/N: Now yes, I know she is currently a bit of a Mary-Sue. But I assure you I have plans for this woman that will be soon. Plans that will make you very on edge of what will happen next.**

**Now, keep me motivated and write a review? ;)**


	2. Homecoming

I awoke with the roosters that morning, something I had not done since my last night in Firenze. The more time I spent in the Auditore villa the more nostalgia filled my bones. Humorous seeing that I've only been here for a few hours in the night.

Yet I couldn't help but think back to last night and feel sad. Was the Priest okay? The nuns? How bad was the Sanctuary destroyed? And what was with Amedeo's reaction to me asking Giovanni of my father? So many questions and thoughts ran through my head, I only found it best to drop the thoughts for now and start my day.

Standing from the bed I brushed down my dress from last night, smoothing out any wrinkles. I then walked to the end of the bed, retrieved my cloak and placed it back over my shoulders. For a moment I contemplated how welcome I was in the house. Would it be rude of me to leave my room before someone came to collect me?

My questions were answered just as Claudia walked into the room.

"Alessa! I've missed you so! It has been so long since I have seen you!" she just about hollered, rushing over and pulling me into a tight embrace.

With a smile on my face I hugged her back, "Ah, Claudia. It has been long, I've missed you as well! Tell me, have you heard of _il prete? (The priest) _I worry of him."

Claudia frowned and shook her head, "No. But Amedeo left to meet a messenger at the city lines. He says he will come back with a full report on all damage and losses."

I nodded, allowing her to release me from her grip.

"Come, breakfast is waiting. Mother cannot wait to see you!" She piped up, trying to loosen the mood.

Once again I decided to put my thoughts behind me and smiled, nodding my head. She lead me down the hallway to the steps where we descended to a dining room fit for royalty. As soon as I entered the room I was greeted by Maria's arms.

"Oh Alessa! I have not seen you since you were a child, and what a woman you have gown to be. Surely your mother has blessed you with those beautiful green eyes," she smiled squeezing tightly before releasing me.

"_Sposato Maria,_ it is good to see you as well," I said, bowing slightly.

"Oh _mio Tesoro_ (My treasure). Do not speak to me so formally. I will always be _la Zia_ (Aunt) to you!" She smiled, showing me to my seat.

"_Si mio Zia, Non ti dimenticherò mai_ ( Yes, Aunt, I will never forget.)" I smiled, taking my seat to the side of the table.

Maria smiled back to me, "Now I know it has been a while. But in case you have forgotten these are my sons; Federico, Ezio, and Petruccio," she said, pointing to each one.

I smiled to the youngest son, "Petruccio. You were but a toddler last time I saw you," I said, turning to my left where he was sitting to touch the top of the boy's head, "You are growing to be a handsome young man."

The boy blushed, nodding his head and giving a small thanks as I retracted my hand.

"And you were but a little girl, crying when her knee was scraped last time we saw you," I heard a male voice come from the side.

Turning, I saw it to be Federico.

"Ah, well. At least I was not an adolescent climbing rooftops to scare the other children," I spat back, getting a bit of laughter from the others.

"Oh, Frederico. Leave her be. The only time you came around was to scare her as a child. Surely you have no room to be playful like she is a woman swooning over you in the market," Claudia spat, beginning the sibling rivalry.

"Well I surely do not remember her being this beautiful last time," Ezio had said from across the table.

A small blush covered my face and I decided it was a good time to look down to my food and take a bite.

"My son, Ezio. _La donna incantatore.(The woman charmer) _I'm sure Christina would be happy about this, eh?" Maria smiled coyly before taking her seat and beginning her breakfast as well.

"Christina?" I asked, curious to the new name.

"Si, Ezio's _Tesoro_ (Sweetheart)," Federico laughed, "Jealous already?"

"He wishes," I said, wishing I could retract my comment as I tried to finish my breakfast. But I was not too up for eating still. Luckily, a few bites in Giovanni entered the dining room.

"Ah, Alessa. Amedeo has just returned. He waits for you at the stables, after you have finished your breakfast of course," he smiled, taking his seat at the end of the table across from Maria.

"No, I will leave now. I am not to fond of eating at the moment," I smiled, patting the corners of my mouth before bowing as I took my leave.

"You don't have to bow to us," Claudia chuckled, "We are famiglia! (Family)."

I gave an awkward smile, looking for the right words to explain myself, "It's a.. bit of a habit. _Scusa, Claudia. (Sorry.)"_

Claudia opened her mouth to respond but was cut off by Maria, "Leave the girl alone, Claudia. She was raised with the manors of a religion. It is very strict to live in a church."

"Better than a bordello," Claudia mumbled.

"I would have preferred things with Paola," I spat, turning on my heel and heading out the door.

I was thankful no one came to follow, or escort me to the stables. Part of me felt horrible for the way I snapped at Claudia. There was just so much on my mind that I hardly even noticed when Amedeo came up and wrapped his arms around me.

"_Buongiorno (Good morning), _How did you sleep?" he questioned, giving me the usual kiss on the forehead.

"Bene (Good). And you?" I questioned, returning his hug before we both released our embrace.

"Not a wink. After escorting you to your room I spoke with Giovanni and was back on the road," he sighed, rubbing the back of his neck.

"Ah. Claudia did mention that. How is everyone? And the damage?" I asked, a bit quicker than I had meant to.

"The Sanctuary can be re-built. Unfortunately there is nothing to salvage from the fire. They are taking donations from the community to re-build, but the Templars are hassling them. It seems it might take some time before they are left alone," he frowned.

"Amedeo, what of the people?" I asked, growing tired of waiting for a casualty list.

"A few guards dead. One of the sisters has died," He said, guiding me down to sit on a log by the horses, "Alessa. I am so sorry, but the Priest is dead."

I opened my mouth to respond, but no words came out. Tears I did not even feel rise were falling before I knew it. Within my silent distress Amedeo let out a breath and pulled me close. It was not until my face was buried into his shoulder did I let out a choke of voice.

The man I called Father for more reasons than just religion has been pronounced dead. My home was burned down and my life was changing by the minute. After what seemed like an eternity of crying I sniffed back all the snot I could and built up the voice to ask another question.

"Which sister, Amedeo?" I questioned through a sob.

"Sister Teresa. (Lol)" he frowned.

"Mio dio… Riposino in pace," I said as a small prayer. (My God. Rest in peace.)

I could not but help to blame my actual father. If he had not been looking for me all of this would never have happened. If he had just let me be I would be fine. I was seventeen now, and to my knowledge that is well past the expiration date of catching up with your child.

But I could not sit idly by, defenseless, having others take care of me. I wanted to learn to take care of my self, to protect my loved ones, much like Amedeo was trained to protect me. Yet the thought of learning, and actually being able to were two different stories.

"Amedeo.."

"Si, Alessa?" He asked, pulling away from the hug just enough to look down on me without having to remove his arms.

"I want to do something. I want to help. Please, Amedeo, teach me how to figh-"

"No, Alessa. Just no. I will not put you in danger. God has better plans for you," He said, shaking his head.

"What if God's plans was this? He is surely giving me the motivation! Please! If you will not then I will seek help elsewhere!" I yelled, moving out of his grip and standing up, "I will not stand idly by while mi famiglia is being harassed because of me!"

Amedeo then stood up as well, "Alessa I will not have you in danger! This is the end of the discussion! Now go inside with Claudia and Maria and spend time being a normal woman instead of wanting to roam the streets as a man!" he yelled.

The words stuck me deeper than he may have thought. Never once has Amedeo raised his voice to me in anger toward me. I know I have never doubted his word before, but now of all times he should at least consider my request. Bluntly telling me 'No' would only crush my spirits without reason.

But emotions were high and I was not one to argue so for the second time today I took my leave. Gathering my skirt from the thighs I lifted them from dragging on the ground and walked toward the vila.

"Alessa," Amedeo called, "Alessa wait!" he called again as he drew near, placing his arm on my shoulder.

I shook him off, "Escort me to Paola's, Messer," I said sternly.

There were rare times I treated Amedeo as he was, a worker to me. But now seemed fitting. He was denying me the one thing I seemed to truly want the most… and if he was not going to give it to me, Paola was.

I just knew it.

But Amedeo seemed stunned by my tone and choice of words, "Si, Signora," he responded, sadly, "I will have the horses ready when you are."

"Bene," I responded, opening the door to Giovanni's villa and letting myself in.

I went up the steps toward the guest bedroom as Amedeo went the opposite direction to gather his own bag. On my way down the hallway I was stopped by Claudia.

"Oh, Alessa. I am-" she said, stopping her first sentence, whatever it might have been, and starting another, "Are you alright?"

The fact that she had even asked only meant that my eyes must have been swollen and red from crying. I only hoped my face would regain it's normal look by the time I reached Paola's. Last thing I would want was to have to cry to her because, more than anything, I just wanted to speak with her of my newly acquired wishes.

She went to go pull me into a hug but I held my hand up, "Claudia, I am sorry for the way I reacted at breakfast. But the thing I want most now is to go see Paola. I miss her greatly."

Claudia nodded, "Alright, come back to visit soon then," She frowned, walking over to her room.

"Claudia," I called, walking over and wrapping my arms around her, "I will most defiantly be back to visit."

I felt her smile on my shoulder as she hugged back. Soon enough we had finished our embrace and I was back on my way to the guestroom. After gathering my things I bid farewell to Maria, Giovanni and Petruccio. Ezio and Federico were out doing errands for their father and were not around to bid farewell. It was then that Amedeo met me at the stables and we mounted our horses. The ride to Paola's was not long, but not as short as I remembered.

I could almost smell the perfumes of the bordello as we neared, making a smile spread wide across my face. I closes in on a group of circled courtesans I smiled down to them, leaning over the side of my horse to speak.

"Go tell Paola that Alessa will be in soon," I grinned, heading my horse over and tying it up at the stable.

Without enough time to even get off my horse and grab my bag I saw Paola yanking the doors open to her bordello and almost breaking her neck to look for me. Quickly, I threw the bag over my shoulder and ran over to her.

"Madre!" I called, feeling the happiness I deserved for the day, "Madre I'm home!"

"Oh mio figla!" She smiled, wrapping her arms around me, "I have missed you! I was so worried when I got the letters of the reason for your arrival, but none the less I was excited to see you!"

I tightly squeezed her, as she did me, and noticed the courtesans around us staring wildly with confusion. Which, I did not blame them. Paola was not one to show much emotion, or affection. But there was a difference with those she considered family.

"Mi madre. I want to learn how to fight. But Amedeo cannot know," I said into her ear, keeping my smile so that he would not be able to see my face.

She pulled away, looking down at me with confused eyes before straightening her face and responding, "We will talk later, my child."

**A/N: Okay. So I am not too fond of this chapter. Don't know why. If you aren't, let me know in a review. Perhaps from the readers point of view, instead of the authors, I'll be able to figure it out and use it as reference to the future chapters?**

**So, go ahead! Tell me how you feel about Alessa being back with Paola and possibly learning 'how to survive' by her Mother?**

**P.s. I have done some grammar work to this chapter, and the last. Not much has changed except a few mistakes I have made.**


	3. Eagle View

**A/N: I'm getting a lot of favorites for the story. Perhaps you could write a review as well? Without any feedback I'm a little stuck on how my readers feel about the story. **

**Also, this is the last chapter I will be writing in first person. From the third chapter and on it will be continued as third person.**

**Finally, my stories have apparently been having trouble when it comes to saving them with a separation bar. If it ever looks out of place, imagine a time skip. I am trying to fix the problem now. (It actually might be fixed for this chapter, and now I am going to go back to check the rest.)**

* * *

The rest of my day was filled with exactly what I have been craving, my Mother. Paola told me stories of the new girls and the older ones I used to know that have moved on. Most of the women were free during the day so the ones that I remembered me were there to say hello.

I almost felt bad for the courtesans. The ones I knew when I was a child were beautiful in their prime. Now they began to sag and wrinkle, which I'm sure was not good for business. But Mother seemed to have a good enough of a heart to let them continue their lives in the bordello as long as they tried to make money. She was all about loyalty, therefore she would never betray her girls.

Amedeo had stayed by my side the entire time, much to my dismay. He had parked himself on the floor to the left of my chair and sat silently, listening to Paola and me converse. She had offered him another seat that could be brought in, but he assured us that he always would prefer the floor to a chair.

"No matter how much I look at you, or how many words I say to you, I still cannot believe you are here, _mio bambino_ (My child)" She said, putting a hand to my face with a smile.

"I understand the feeling. Everything is changing so much by the minute these past few days. I almost cannot believe I am here either," I said as she pulled her hand back.

I looked down once to Amedeo, who was distracted by the moon outside of the window. When I returned my glance to Paola she nodded in understanding.

"Come, Alessa. Let's go see if I have some spare clothes to fit you until we can go to the market and buy you some more. Surely the small bag you have will not suit you for how long your stay will be," Paola said, standing up as she smoothed out her dress.

Amedeo just about jumped up from his spot on the floor, "I.. uh.. Better go to bed. Don't want to intrude on you ladies trying clothes… I will check on you in the morning, Alessa," He said, kissing my forehead and exiting the room.

As soon as he was out and the door closed behind him I stood from my seat. Sighing, I looked to Paola and gave out a small laugh.

"I thought he was never going to leave!" I exclaimed, throwing my hands up before letting them fall back to my sides.

Paola smiled, walking over to a dresser in the corner of the room, "You have a good man there, Alessa. I am happy for you."

"W-What? Oh.. Mother no. Me and Amedeo, we are not-"

"Child I can call a spark when I see one," she said in a motherly tone, pointing her finger at me, "That man feels for you."

"Well I suspected as much. He had been protecting me since I was ten years old!" I exclaimed, unable to think of Amedeo in a romantic way.

Paola chuckled, finding it best to not respond to my ignorance. She dug through the drawer some more until she pulled forth a small pile of clothes. Laying them on the bed she looked to me and waved her hand out.

"Well, they are not going to put themselves on."

Giving her a sly look, I began stripping of my royal-ware and started applying the clothes she had set out for me. I was a basic white tunic with Juliette sleeves, a pair of knickers with a rope string tie and leather boots. Seeing that they were fit for a man they were a bit wide on me. But Paola fixed that by putting a brown leather corset around my waist.

The small female touch to it had made it a hundred times better. The clothes were still not fitting, but now they looked as if they belonged to me.

"You are starting to look like you actually belong in the order now," She smiled, going to a chest at the end of the bed.

"You mean I'm starting to not look like a royal priss?" I laughed.

I was glad she had smiled at that, but I shouldn't have expecting a punishment anyway. We were no longer in the Sanctuary. I was no longer under a strict law.

After she found what she was looking for she brought the cloth like object over to me, "This was my hood back when I was your age," she smiled, fanning it over my shoulders and pulling it over my face, "And now I want you to have it."

Excited to see, I turned to my side to check it out in the mirror. The hood did not go down to my ankles like my last, but it did however reach an inch or two below my hip. It was more like a red-riding hood, with holes in the sides instead of sleeves, therefore allowing my juiette sleeves to poke through. The fabric was a deep forest green with gold trims.

"Madre, it is beautiful!" I exclaimed, turning back and giving her a hug.

"I am glad you like it. The best part is that it hides your sex. Therefore you will not be bothered as much for being a woman. Keep the hood up to hide your face, and your hair back," she instructed, handing me a ribbon for my hair when she pulled away from my embrace.

Nodding, I pulled the hood down and twisted my hair. After twirling it into a bun I tied the ribbon around it and pulled the hood back up.

"Like this, Mama?" I asked, turning to allow her to see me in full view.

"Perfect bambino," she said, folding her arms, "Now. Tonight we will teach you to stealth. Tomorrow you learn to steal. Then you will learn to hide and quiet your name from being said around the cities. After the third day you will continue to practice and I will see to who can train you."

"Without Amedeo being able to find out," I added.

* * *

The next four days were a bit of a nuisance. I had hardly slept seeing that the only time I could train was during the night. Part of me believed that it was mother's way of testing to see my dedication to training, but I was damned if I backed out now.

Now I couldn't say that I mastered the art of stealing or stealth, but I was surely better than a novice. It was easy to learn to blend in with crowds, but hard to get away if I was caught. Frequently I would be grabbed by guards, having to be rescued by the courtesans. Of course, that came at a price. For what was free to the guards, cost me later.

Once again it was night, Amedeo went to sleep and I was almost done dressing in my usual night attire.

"Alessa," Paola called from the doorway just as I finished applying my hood, "You must rest tonight. Tomorrow you will learn how to scale the buildings and jump the roofs."

Baffled, I was not able to reply at first, "W-what? You mean… like Amedeo does?"

"Si. I have found you a trainer, he had been teaching his little brother recently and I figured you can join in the training. Amedeo is going back to the sanctuary for a few days. The have 'called' for his help," she said, emphasizing on the 'called'.

"Mother! What did you do?" I questioned loudly.

"Nothing, child. I merely gave him… false information of them needing him. No harm. He will take a days travel, see what is needed, rest for the night and travel again. So you will have three days, during the morning, to train. On the third you must be home and dressed royally by noon," she explained.

"Why so early on the third?" I questioned, beginning to remove the clothing and dressing in a night gown.

"In case Amedeo is back early. Now get some sleep," she said, turning to exit my room.

"Wait, Madre! Who is training me?" I asked, fanning down my nightgown and pulling back the sheets to my bed.

"Federico Auditore."

* * *

Amedeo awoke me that morning, once again, by a gentle shake of my shoulder, "Alessa," he cooed.

"Hmm?" I mumbled, rolling over to face him as I opened one eye. It was still a bit dark out, so I only assumed it was almost dawn.

"Alessa the sanctuary has sent Paola a letter calling me in. They apparently need my help fending off some of the Templars so that they can try and rebuild. I will be back as soon as I can," he whispered, trying not to disturb my half-asleep state.

"Essere al sicuro,(Be safe) Amedeo," I said, yawning as he kissed my forehead and left my room.

Not even a few moments had passed and I was already dead asleep. Surely my body was trying to catch up. But, alas, that was dreams far away.

"Alessa," Paola called, shaking me rougher than Amedeo did, "Get up and get ready. Federico will be here soon to collect you."

Groaning, I rolled over away from her and pulled the sheet over my head, "Mama, I am so tired!"

"Do you want the training or not?" She questioned sternly, ripping the blankets from my body, "Now get up and dress!" she yelled, walking out of my room without another word.

I huffed and got out of bed, heading for my dresser. As soon as the door was shut behind her I quickly dressed in my male attire and pulled the hood over my face.

Then, with a yawn, I left my bedroom and walked down to the foyer of the bordello. There stood Federico and Ezio, waiting for me.

"Soo. This is the young lad wishing to learn scaling?" Federico questioned, a sarcastic grin plastered over his face, "He looks so dainty. Are you sure he can handle it?" He almost laughed.

I was a bit confused. But if Mother had set this up I would trust she meant for the boys to think I was a male, and not the Alessa they know.

"If you push him hard enough," she said with her usual straight face.

"Well. Does 'he' have a name?" Ezio questioned.

"Angelo," Paola said, "Now go outside. He will meet you, I must have a word first."

Federico and Ezio nodded their heads and left the door. Not before catching the eyes of a few of the girls first, of course.

"Mother!" I exclaimed, closing in on her as I stomped my feet, "What do you think you are doing?"

"I am not sure the Auditore brothers can keep a secret, especially from their father. If Giovanni finds out I am letting you train I doubt he will think of the positive side of things. You are to be protected, not to fight. None of them understand sometimes it is best for you to learn. But fear not, after you are trained we will let everyone know. They cannot change what is already done," she explained, placing a hand on my shoulder, "Now go, learn with the Auditore boys. After you get the hang of things during the day, we will continue to practice your skills at night."

There wasn't really much I could say. There was no sense in arguing, seeing that she would always know what was best. Instead I nodded my head, fixed the hood to be sure it would cover my face and walked out the doors.

"Are you ready?" Federico questioned, a smirk still on his face, "Because we do not do things the easy way around here."

* * *

"Come ON. PULL YOURSELF UP," Federico yelled from the rooftop, "What kind of man are you if you cannot even lift your own weight?"

Now if I were actually a man who cared about defending his pride that would have hurt me. Instead, it just irritated the hell out of me.

We had been scaling walls and jumping from rooftops for God knows how long. All I knew was that the sun was close to going down and I was on the final ledge of an eagle view while having a bit of trouble pulling up. What could I say? I was exhausted and it's always the last step of the staircase that kills you.

Grunting, I finally used everything in me to pull myself forward and used my foot to sturdy myself. After situating my balance I stood up, taking a step down into the guard post and letting out a breath.

"About time," Ezio scoffed, "I wasn't even this bad starting."

No one knew how bad I wanted to say something back. But, instead, I was forced to look the other way and bite my tongue.

The view really was gorgeous up here, I could see almost the entire city!

"Are you ready then?" Federico asked, his sadistic smirk re-appearing back on his face.

Cocking my head to the side I implied a, "For what?" gesture.

"Heh. How do you think we are going to get down?" he questioned, right as Ezio took a nose dive off the side of the edge.

Gasping, I ran to the edge and leaned over. Watching as Ezio landed gracefully in the haystack I let out a breath I hadn't even realized I was holding in.

"Now you see how he did that?" Federico questioned, "You only have one chance to get it right. Ready?"

I could feel the sweat in the palms of my hands and my stomach get queasy.

"Get on the ledge."

Cautious, I climbed up as I was told to. Suddenly the ground seemed a lot further down as my vision began to sway. Was I developing a fear of heights? Holy hell, no wonder I was so tired, had I really climbed this high?

Mind racing a mile a minute I completely missed what Federico had said. When I turned to ask what, he pushed me off the ledge.

Almost letting out a scream I covered my mouth, trying to position my body the way Ezio had to his. But I guess I was a bit off because I doubt the landing was supposed to hurt that bad.

Luckily, Ezio was there to help pull me from the hay so that Federico could drop as well.

Standing up I held my lower back, feeling the raising of the pain all the way down to my toes.

"You look like an old man, straighten up!" Federico said, "You are a man, and you must act like one. If an injury from a fall is enough to stop you, how do you expect to get away from guards if you are shot with an arrow?"

Injury. Shot. Guards. Arrow.

What the hell had I got myself into?

Groaning, I straighten my back with a loud 'POP' and sighed as the pain was almost lifted.

"See, now that is the spirit. Come now, we are going to walk you home to tell Paola of your work today," Federico said, starting to walk in the direction I would assume to be the bordello.

I nodded, starting to walk behind him.

"You go on ahead, I need to meet up with Father. He has some errands he wants me to run and I am not looking to be up all night doing them," Ezio said, waving to this brother.

Federico waved back, laughing, "Don't lie, brother! You don't care for sleep. This is about Christina!"

"Vaffanculo," was Ezio's only response before disappearing into the crowd.

I couldn't help but stiff a chuckle. The Auditore brothers were much better company as opposed to Claudi. In my opinion she was too usual, average and too… girly. Yet the boys had fun. The played, joked around and got reckless. That was what I wanted to be. That was what I am going to be.

Not long later we arrived back at the bordello. Federico told mother of how I was horrible at first, not bad in the middle and horrible at the end. After telling her of my free-fall he mentioned I would need to be a bit more active if I wanted to progress in my training.

That was when she mentioned starting the morning off running over the rooftops to build stamina. At that, I headed right to my room before they even finished their conversation. I was DEFINATLY going to need some sleep before tomorrow.

**Review dearies!**


	4. Uncle

Paola awoke me the next day before the sun even had a chance to raise. After she was sure I was awake she left the room so that I could get ready. Standing up from the bed I realized that the soreness from last night was nothing compared to what I was feeling now. Getting dressed seemed like a chore and I was dreading just what I would be feeling during the actual workout.

Apparently it was taking me longer than it should have to get ready, seeing that Paola had returned to retrieve me from my room with a tray in her hands, "Alessa, affrettatevi! (Hurry up!)" she harshly whispered, "The brothers are getting restless waiting for you."

"I know Mama, but I am so sore. Everything hurts," I whined quietly as I pulled the hood over my face.

"If you want to run with the men, you must learn how to handle yourself like a man," she said, setting the tray down, "But I figured this would happen. So here, drink this," she said, handing me the tea cup from the tray.

I took the cup into my hands, "What is it?" I asked.

"You do not have time to ask questions. You trust me, so drink!" she exclaimed, ushering me with her hands.

Without another word I chugged the lukewarm liquid from the cup and set it down. Nothing seemed to change but the smirk on her face told me that it would soon enough. So, with a nod I passed her and walked through the door. Heading down to the entrance room I met the boys with yet another nod.

"Ah! Finalmente!" Federico exclaimed as he threw his hands up, "You take as much time as a woman to get ready!"

If only you knew, I thought as I met them at the door.

"We will have him back by nightfall, Donna (beautiful)," Ezio said with his usual flirtatious smirk that did not seem to phase Paola.

"I will see you when you have returned," she nodded as the three of us exited the door.

Federico stopped a few feet outside the door and placed his hands on his hips as he evaluated the area. Ezio stood by him, arms crossed. They both appeared to be in thought. So I stood and waited, arms by my side as I awaited orders of how training was going to start this morning. (Though I was already expecting the running for stamina.) Moments passed of what I assumed was them planning when whatever Paola had put into the tea was starting to take effect.

I started to feel as if I was walking on a cloud. All of my pain had went away and there was nothing left but this feathery feeling. My mood had changed as well. No longer was I groggy from the morning. In fact, I was wide awake. I'm almost positive there must have been the slightest hint of a smile on my face too. What had she drugged me with? I was brought out of my words when I noticed that the boys were quietly talking to each other. The smile gone and an eyebrow raised I watched as they both turned their bodies to now face me.

"Do you think we are stupid?" Federico asked, raising a hand.

I cocked my head to the side to avoid a verbal responce. My head felt like nothing and I'm sure I may have actually cocked it a bit too far to the side without noticing at the time.

"Well?" He questioned further.

Were they onto me?

"She might be afraid to respond. Doens't want us to hear the womanly voice," Ezio mocked.

Yeah. They were onto me.

"Well, Alessa? Do you think we are stupid?" Ezio asked, crossing his arms once more, a smirk appearing on his face.

Shit. They knew.

Sighing, I removed the hood to reveal my face and hung my head in shame.

"Ahh. And the real face of Angelo is shown," Federico said, now matching Ezio with a smirk.

"I can explain," I started, raising my head.

"There is no need to. We can pretty much assume why you wish to learn scaling. Paola has agreed to train you, hasn't she?" Federio stated matter-o-factly.

I nodded, lowering my head once more.

"Is this really what you want?" He asked, his smirk leaving as the seriousness in the conversation now presented itself.

I raised my head, straightening my back with a senes of pride, "Yes. No longer do I want to be 'the profit'," I said, a hint of attitude in my voice, "I do not want to be known for what I am vunerable for. Being known for what people should steer clear of me for would be much safer for myself and those around me."

Ezio's face showed a hint of confusion as he leaned in, expecting me to furhter explain myself.

"Ezio, would you go for a walk?" Federico asked, now turning to his brother.

"What? Are you kidding? I am just as involved in this as you are," Ezio argued, keeping his place in the small circle we had made.

"No, Ezio. You are not. One day you will, but for now you need to walk," Federico said sternly as he nodded in a direction as if telling him to go.

Ezio's confusion grew just as much as his anger did. Reluctantly, he walked off. As soon as Federico was sure he was far enough away to not hear, he continued.

"Alessa. You must understand that no matter how strong you are, or how strong the others are around you, that the Templars will never leave you be. They are on a mission just as we are and they do not plan to let up, just as we do not," he stated as if he was scolding a child.

"I will not stand idly by while people continue to die for me," I spat back with all the venom I could muster, raising my head to stare Federico in the eyes, "If you do not teach me, I will find someone else to. If no one will in the order, I will leave and find someone who will."

"You will get killed. You will be butchered. They will have no mercy for your soul, only for what it possesses."

"I did not ask for this!" I said louder than intended, my anger rises.

"No, but you were blessed with it!" he said, matching my voice and taking a step further and looking down on me, "You are not just some girl who will grow to be a profit. You are a piece of divinity. You are a piece of Eden."

"No. I am fused with a piece, why do they not remove it and let me live a normal life? Why not hide it with the others?"

"Because it it not a piece of Eden hiding in a girl, Alessa. You **are** the piece. It is not apart of you, it is **you,**" he said.

Taking a step back I shook my head in shock, not losing eye contact, "But... But that's not what-"

"Your priests have told you your whole life. I know. And I shouldn't have been the one to tell you. But you must understand. When they fused the spirit of that shard of Eden to you, it attached to your soul. If it is extracted from you, you die. If you die, it returns to Eden," He explained, seeing the hint of pain in my face.

Sighing, he wiped his forehead and turned his body away from me.

"How do you know all this? Why are you so informed?"

Placing his hands on his hips, Federico looked down to his shoes and sighed once more. After a moment of silence he turned back around, lowered his arms and made eye contact once more.

"Father knows of us training you yesterday-"

"**What?** You **told** him?"

"Alessa I had to! It is the entire likes of the creed to protect you! I explained to him what you are trying to do and this is what he told me. This is the message I am to delay to you," he said, taking a step toward me and placing his hands on my shoulders, "You're leaving, Alessa. You are leaving Firenze once more. They are taking you to Monteriggioni."

Tears welded in my eyes, "W-what? Please, Federico," I started, placing my hands on his sides, "Please try to convince him to let me stay. I'm sorry I tried to learn these things, do not take me away from Paola and you all, I have only just got here!" I cried.

Federico smiled and pulled me into a hug, "Alessa you are going to Monteriggioni to learn to fight with our Uncle Mario."

Shock filled my bones as I looked up to Federico from our embrace, "What?" I choked through my panic-filled tears.

"Paola will be informed by Father in the afternoon. Do not worry, she is not in trouble. You will leave tonight. Amedeo is supposed to be arriving by tomorrow night and we must have you out before then."

I ended the embrace and backed up slightly, but still standing close to Federico, "Amedeo will not be joining me?"

"No. If he joins you he will not let you fight. He is closer with the church than he is with the creed. Although we are an alliance, they follow their own strict rules and Father is sure he will not bend to agreeing to this."

"Then why question me earlier and tell me that it was dangerous?"

"I had to make sure that you were serious about this and that it wasn't just an act of rebellion or something you young women like to do," He smirked, giving me a wink.

I couldn't help but smile through my slight frustration.

"Now, we will find Ezio and continue to teach you scaling. That way when you make it to Uncle Mario's you won't be COMPLETELY hopeless," he said, stepping forward and pulling the hood back over my face, "Are you ready?"

"As ready as I ever will be."

**Sorry for grammatical mistakes and what not. I wrote this quickly so I could get a chapter up tonight for you all. I will read through it later in the week when I go to add more chapters.**

**Sorry I have not written in a while, I had a lot of things to do! D:**

**Go ahead and write me a review, let me know if something does not make sense with this chapter following the past few. (I.E. Something does not add up, something was left un-answered) If so I will correct it in the next chapter (Or edit this one and leave a note to re-read this one in the next before reading it!)**

**Lemme know how my work is doing!**


	5. Amedeo and the Principessa

Whatever it was that Paola put in the tea made scaling that day much easier for me. It seemed to have not only made my pain go away, but also in increased my stamina by ten fold. Of course, regardless of how my body was feeling, I decided to play it safe and not push myself as hard as I know I could have in my drugged state. Whatever it was numbing my senses, I didn't want to be sore for it in the morning.

In other news, I seemed to have made a decent amount of progress by the midday. Now I'm not saying I am as good as Ezio or Federio, no where near it. But I was able to spot in the buildings what I could climb up easier now. No more randomly grabbing and hoping whatever it was I got my hands on would be strong enough to support my weight. I tried my best to find my own path instead of following every movement by the boys like I had the day before to ensure that I would learn this better.

"Nice job today, Alessa," Federico said, placing a hand on my shoulder briefly and taking a few steps ahead of me as we reached the top of a building.

I was late afternoon, we would have about another hours worth of roaming before Paola would be expecting me back.

"Thank you," I breathed, taking the time to catch my breath. The drugs must have finally been wearing off.

"No where near us though," Ezio sneered, completing our triangle by standing slightly off, but between me and Federico.

I chuckled, deciding not to waste my time in petty arguments and squatted down, elbows resting on my knees so I could have a moment to relax. They seemed to have enjoyed the idea of a small break and sat down as well.

"You know, years ago," Ezio started, "If they had told me that **precious** little Alessa, The Profit of Eden, would be learning how to scale buildings by me and Federico, I would have laughed in their face."

"Oh come on now. I was never the girly type," I snorted.

"Oh **please**," Federico laughed, "Dressed in the finest silks, the posture of a Greek Goddess, always accompanied by several body guards and sitting quietly with your hands in your lap. If that was not the spitting image of a **priss**, I don't know what is."

I huffed and gave them both a sour face as Ezio joined his laughter, "Stop it now. That would be the ignorant child of your youth judging a book by it's cover."

"Oh hey now, don't get feisty on us!" Ezio said, still not controlling his laughter, "I might like it," he winked.

"Oh brother, stop with this flirtatious mess," Federico said, rolling his eyes and punching Ezio's arm.

"Why, are you jealous?" Ezio questioned playfully, the laughter between the two dying down but the smiles still present.

Rolling my eyes, I stood and took a deep breath, "As much as I enjoy the two of you fighting over me, shall we get back to training? From the looks of the sky, we don't have much time left."

The two looked to each other and raised eyebrows, "Fighting over you?" they said in unison before laughing once more.

I huffed and crossed my arms. There really was no winning with them. After a few moments of their shared laughter I stood with my arms crossed when the two of them stood to their feet.

"Well, if you are so eager to continue training. Why not try the free fall again?" Federico questioned.

The thought of it made my stomach drop and I groaned. Climbing the buildings was no problem. Jumping from building to building was starting to get easier. AS LONG AS I DIDN'T HAVE TO LOOK DOWN. But unfortunately, for the free fall, that was exactly what I would have to do.

"Oh, are we scared now Miss I-want-to-be-a-man?" Ezio said sarcastically and raised an eyebrow.

Rolling my eyes once more I dropped my arms back down to my side, "Absolutely not, let's do this."

* * *

_**(Sometimes there is a problem in my doc.s where the space lines do not appear. If one does not appear, it is supposed to be here.)**_

The trip to Uncle Mario's couldn't have been in my trademark carriage from the Church. I wasn't even allowed to wear my own clothes. Giovanni Had retrieved one of Claudia's dresses for me to wear. It was a deep forest green with silver trimmings, matching my hood almost perfectly.

The heat of summer did no justice to us on our travels. I was accompanied by Federico and Giovanni himself and none of us were in good moods due to the weather. Therefore the entire ride was in a dead silence. Federico rode in the hay cart with me as Giovanni sat in the front, steering the two horses.

Before our departure I had said my goodbyes to the rest of the Auditores, the courtesans and Paola. The only ones questioning my leave were Claudia and Ezio. I assumed it was because of their lack of knowledge of the order. Of course Maria would be aware, seeing that her husband was an important factor. Claudia may never know, I doubt that her parents would care too much for her being apart of it either. I only wondered when they would tell Ezio of his family's secrets. He will be turning seventeen in two weeks, so I assume it might be sometime around then.

Losing my train of thought I looked out to the sky and thought back to old days. When nothing seemed to be wrong.

* * *

_**(Sometimes there is a problem in my doc.s where the space lines do not appear. If one does not appear, it is supposed to be here.)**_

I was eleven years old, walking down the same halls I do every day. The church was quiet today as no one was there. The nuns and priest had left to hold a charity party in a nearby town to gather funds to help for the years bills. Myself, Amedeo and a few other guards were the only ones remaining.

Amedeo walked beside me down the hall, he was fifteen years old and a very promises fighter. He had surpassed many of the other guards in skill and therefore earned his right to stand by me day by day as my personal guard. The other ones, however, stood and watched the perimeter by both entrances of the church.

"How are you feeling today, M'lady?" he asked quietly, hoping to break the silence that had been lingering for the year I had known him.

The Priest had always told me that men are sinners and that I should not speak with any of them that were not religious officials. Guards were shadows I was not to acknowledge and whistling boys in the streets were taught to be nothing more than peasants. Knowing this, I looked up to him with an awkward glance and retracted my eyes back to the floor.

"You don't talk much, do you?" he asked. I could almost hear the smile in his voice, "Understandable."

I looked back up to him with confusion now in my stare, "What do you mean?" I asked, my voice cracking from the silence I withheld always.

"Ah. And she speaks. Curiosity killed the cat, you know," He chuckled.

Blood rushed to my face and my glance made it's way back to the floor.

"Now, now. I did not mean to scare your voice off once more, Principessa (Princess), " he said.

"I am not a princess," I said, voice still quiet and face still flushed.

"Ah, but you are," he said, looking down to me as I looked up to him with a smile, "You will always be a princess to me."

* * *

_**(Sometimes there is a problem in my doc.s where the space lines do not appear. If one does not appear, it is supposed to be here.)**_

I hadn't realized I was smiling, but the weird face Federico gave me was what helped me realize it. Looking down to the floor, the silence continued as I tried to think of the last time Amedeo had called me Principessa.

* * *

_**(Sometimes there is a problem in my doc.s where the space lines do not appear. If one does not appear, it is supposed to be here.)**_

Now fifteen years old, Amedeo has broken my silence to him despite the disapproval of the Priest. In fact, the Priest would often threaten to replace him with a different guard but everyone knew he never would. As the years passes Amedeo was only getting better with his skills and no one in the area would be able to top him. Jeopardizing my safety was not something the Priest would be stupid enough to do just because I was now talking to a male.

"Alessa! How are you this morning?" Amedeo called from down the hall as I left my room in the morning.

"Great," I smiled to him as he held his arm out. Linking my hand into his elbow I looked up to him and we began our usual walk to the gardens in the middle of the church grounds, "Is there any more news of the break in last week?" I questioned, curiosity in my voice.

"No, not really," Amedeo said as he looked to the wall, a common thing he did when he was lying or hiding something from me.

"Amedeo…" I cooed sternly, "What are you hiding?"

"Nothing," He said, smiling down in reassurance at me.

I stopped in my tracks and gave him a further sternful look, "Do no play games or lie to me."

Amedeo sighed and removed my hand from his arm, placing both of his hands on the back of my head and kissing my forehead, "Nothing you need to worry of now, Principessa, I promise."

* * *

_**(Sometimes there is a problem in my doc.s where the space lines do not appear. If one does not appear, it is supposed to be here.)**_

Two years? Two years and he had not called me by his own pet name. It only made me curious as to what really happened that night there was a break in. Perhaps something that was going to draw his attention away from me? Of course, Amedeo's feelings were always going to be obvious but now that I was thinking about it, I had noticed a slight change in the way he would casually leave hints of his feelings instead of making it obvious with actions and words.

Besides the kisses to my forehead. That was something that had never stopped and I doubt ever would.

Well, except for now.

Wondering wither or not I would ever see him again made my heart ache as I realized it was yet another person I was leaving behind, all because of who I was and my duties to the title. Staring off back to the sky, I felt it best to catch up on sleep before arriving at Uncle Mario's house. Who knows what times of day he does his training and I did not want to be any more ill-prepared as I already was.

**_I am well aware of how much everyone hates filler chapters, but I figured I should put just a tad bit more of depth to the story behind my character before I continue. (That way I am not explaining the background as I go, which tends to only get the readers confused and the writer mixed up.)_**

**_Also! Sorry for the messages after the space lines (if they appeared.) If they do, in fact, appear in the chapter you will not be seeing them in the next chapter!_**

**_I plan on writing one more chapter tonight. 3 (I am not sure if I will post it tonight though.)_**

**_The ideas I have for this story will have you at the edge of your seat begging__me to post the next chapter. (I hope!)_**

**_Enojoy reading and leave me a review, it helps motivate me to write more!_**

**_Goodnight/day/morning loves!_**

**_-Essa_**


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